How to identify a BlackBerry smartphone PIN number

Hey #TeamBlackBerry, I’ve got a question for you – do you know how to identify your BlackBerry® smartphone PIN number and what it can be used for?

Simply put, a BlackBerry smartphone PIN (Personal Identification Number) is an 8-digit alphanumeric combination that uniquely identifies BlackBerry smartphones on the wireless network. By sharing your PIN number with friends and family, they can message you using PIN messaging, or use it as one way to add you to their BlackBerry® Messenger (BBM™) contact list.

Today I’ll be showing you a few different ways to find out what your PIN number is. This is something every BlackBerry smartphone user should know, so if you don’t know what your PIN number is currently, grab your device and let’s get started…

Method 1 – Accessing the Help Me! Screen

Your BlackBerry smartphone contains a Help Me! screen that when accessed, shows you useful information such as what your PIN number is, what version of BlackBerry® Device Software you are currently using and more. To access this screen, complete the steps below that apply to you.

To access the Help Me! screen on a BlackBerry smartphone with a full qwerty keyboard (such as the BlackBerry® Bold™ 9900 smartphone):

Press ALT + aA (the shift key) + H

The Help Me! screen now appears.

To access the Help Me! screen on a BlackBerry smartphone using touch screen technology (such as the BlackBerry® Torch™ 9850 smartphone):

Hold the escape/back key

Tap the top left of the screen

Tap the top right of the screen

Tap the top left of the screen

Tap the top right of the screen.

To access the Help Me! screen on a BlackBerry smartphone using a SureType keyboard (such as the BlackBerry® Pearl™ 9100 smartphone):

While holding the ALT key, press ER AS CV ER (once each) to access the Help Me! screen

Method 2 – Accessing Device Information

In addition to the Help Me! Screen, you can also use the Device and Status Information screen to identify the BlackBerry smartphone PIN number. Complete the steps below, depending on which version of BlackBerry Device Software you are currently using. (For help finding out which version you are using, check out this post on how to identify the BlackBerry device software version.)

Tip: You can also use Universal Search to find this information – just type PIN and select Options (1) to be shown the option of Device and Status Information, which contains your PIN number.

Method 3 – Underneath the battery

If the BlackBerry smartphone belongs to someone else and it has a password lock, you can identify the PIN number by removing the battery and looking at the sticker that appears on the BlackBerry smartphone. For example, the red box below indicates where the sticker is located on a BlackBerry Torch 9850 smartphone.

Method 4 – BlackBerry Messenger

On top of using the device options and checking out the back of a BlackBerry smartphone, you can also grab your PIN number while using BlackBerry Messenger. To view your BlackBerry smartphone PIN number, complete the following steps:

Open BlackBerry Messenger

Press the Menu key and select View My Profile

The BlackBerry smartphone PIN number is now displayed.

Method 5 – Use Autotext

If you follow the Inside BlackBerry Help Blog, you may have come across my article on Having fun with Autotext. This handy feature allows a BlackBerry smartphone to replace specific text with Autotext entries. For example, if you type something that can be replaced with an Autotext entry, the text changes after you press the Space key (for example, BRB will change to Be Right Back). You can also use this feature to get your BlackBerry smartphone PIN number.

Let’s say a colleague emails you asking for your BlackBerry smartphone PIN number. All you need to do is type ‘my pin’ without the space (‘mypin’) and you’ll notice that the BlackBerry smartphone automatically inserts your PIN number. An important thing to keep in mind you need to type ‘mypin’ followed by a space in order for this to work.

Tip: If this doesn’t work for you, check out my post on Having fun with Autotext to learn how you can create autotext entries.

Method 6 – BlackBerry Desktop Software

If you have set up your BlackBerry smartphone with BlackBerry Desktop Software on a PC or Mac, you can obtain the PIN number of the BlackBerry smartphone by reviewing the BlackBerry smartphone details that appear on the main screen.

The views expressed on any corporate or individual's personal website or any Twitter account are not necessarily those of BlackBerry. The user's Twitter account and/or personal website, any corporate website, or any comments contained on any of the foregoing have not been reviewed by BlackBerry and do not constitute an endorsement by BlackBerry.